Doward's daily does it all: SCCA STX, NASA TT5, Gridlife ClubTR?

[doward]

Originally Posted by cmiovino

Do you think the Deka ETX9 is going to be enough power?

How are you mounting the super small ETX9?

Originally Posted by Racecomp Engineering

I use the Deka ETX-30L on my daily, which sits for 3-5 days pretty frequently and outside during the winter. It's been great for a year so far. It's 20.2 lbs without posts.

I already have the etx9 from the Miata racecar. I opted to keep the OEM battery in the right rear corner on that car, so the ETX9 is just sitting around. I never considered that it wouldnt start the FA20, and my car does sit for weeks at a time occasionally... so maybe not a great idea.

[doward]

onto Sunday.
The biggest change was that I bought brand new 200tw autocross tires for the first time since my Gen 3 Nickel 15x9 6ULs arrived back in 2015? I've been running the last few years on friend's/customer's high heat cycle scrubs.
The other big change was the RLCAs. As noted a year ago(!) NASA changed their ST/TT allowance and made the SCCA STX-allowed RLCA a freebie. So off came the Whiteline urethane offset bushed RUCAs and on went the Whiteline RLCAs, and unlocked was another full degree of rear camber(if i wanted all of it.)


Now at -5*/-3.1* ish:





The fresh tires changed the car dramatically. It was very neutral and placeable and generally well set up for how I wanted to drive it last year, while also being fast enough to sneak out some #1 PAX. This weekend it was absolutely hooked up.
It had so much more rear grip on throttle and really seemed to pull the outside rear tire around, without upsetting the rear axle and causing any true oversteer. It was awesome.

I won STX(and the local catch-all ST class). One other fast/national caliber car/driver in a field of 10+ STX.
I topped PAX
Exceedingly rare for me is an overall FTD!

[doward]

I have not yet installed the Karcepts bar, but I've won every OVR SCCA event ive shown up to, once overall FTD, 3 ST wins(catch-all including STX) and 2 top PAX.

Im pretty excited to get the front bar in. Along with that job is new inner and outer tie rods, new rear toe rods and then a full alignment/corner balance checkup.

This weekend is Point Event #7. Ive won 3 and missed 3, currently sitting 3rd in the Championship. I think I control my own destiny for the season championship if I can perform well this weekend and the remaining 2.

[doward]

2024 OVR SCCA Governor’s Cup. August 3rd.

Made it to final four and only got beat by the eventual winner. I did sit at the top of PAX for one round, and set the overall FTD of the whole day, but lost in the semifinal by .09 seconds.

Another great day. I’m so glad this cheap rusty hunk of junk has worked out so well.

This is the second event that a random stranger has approached me after a run and told me that my car just “looks different” in our bumpy, tight, lot. Most of you don’t need to hear this but the Xidas are phenomenal.

[doward]

Another full sweep this weekend.

Class win
#1 PAX
#1 Raw(overall FTD)

Still no Karcepts bar, nor the rear arm revamp. Soon...?

[doward]

Last year i bought this Karcepts front swaybar that I ended up discovering would not fit/work with my existing front struts.
Between that incompatibility and wanting to make a two-axle springrate change, I decided to try a new set of custom valved coilovers from Shaftworks.
THAT then gave me the impetus to finally complete the swap from whiteline offset RUCA bushings and stock RLCAs to whiteline RLCAs and stock RUCAs for more camber and MUCH easier adjustability. I did the offset RUCA bushings for NASA TT5 penalty avoidance and then they immediately gave every car one pair of arms for free two months later.
While I was under there, the car also got some maintenance parts, rear toe rods and a slew of upgrades to close the gap on "full prep" for SCCA STX(now DST) including;
2x NRG Prisma bucket seats
2x BuddyClub mounts/sliders
Works Bell hub, NRG quick release and MOMO Mod78
NOCO NLP20 battery and billet mount.
weighed both my catback exhuasts and decided to lose 12lbs and gain 12db.
DBA two piece front rotors
Brushed Clear, Forged, APEX VS5-RS and moved the existing set of 245/40/17 RE71RS over.

In total, i pulled roughly 100lbs out of the car and it scaled at ~2585 with about a 1/4 tank.


I missed the local region test and tune, so my first event was a travel up to Northwest Ohio region's concrete runway site; Toledo Express Airport.
I havent driven on concrete since SCCA Nats 2018, and boy was it fun. Obviously a huge number of changes since i drove the car last, so im not drawing any wild conclusions yet, but the car felt really good and im excited to try it again this weekend at the local asphalt lot.

[smackrel]

Can you tell me what knob that is plz?

[doward]

Did that shakedown at Toledo. Car kinda sucked.
Did a local event with Ohio Valley Region on asphalt. Car was mildly better but still not good.

Decided to make some changes for the next event up in Toledo. I intended to only change some shock body lengths and reset/correct the rake after the suspension had settled a bit. I was hoping to get the front axle up off the bumpstops a bit, and to trade some rear bump for more droop. I thought I had a lack-of-bump-travel issue up front and I knew I had a rear diff traction issue out back.


I found the RF endlink unhooked...


I think I simply forgot to hook it back up after I corner balanced the car with the install of the Shaftworks. The rear was connected as I moved it to full stiff after corner balance. Big DERP moment.

So, back to Toledo for Points Event #3(second on concrete)

In short, the car was magic. #1 PAX.


I bought an ATS Carbon diff after the first shitshow last month and will now be holding off until after the ProSolo this weekend to make that change. At the same time, i'll be reinstalling either the Whiteline rear bar I have on the shelf from long ago.

[doward]

last lap for the win.

[autoracer86]

I was just asking my friend yesterday who is Dan howard as I saw you at the top of the timing for DST at the toledo pro and today I find your build thread haha

Awesome driving man

[doward]

Originally Posted by autoracer86

who is Dan howard

You have no idea how many times I/we heard that this weekend. It was never not funny.



This was my first ever ProSolo. Ive always thought of myself as 'nearly there' with my local fast buddies but have never really pursued 'serious' autocross. My one SoloNats (2017 STR) was in an employer's car and I was simply the fastest employee behind our hired gun pilot(Ken Motonishi.)

I hadnt autocrossed on concrete since then, hence the effort into preparing for and driving up to these last two NWOR regional events on the same concrete site as the Pro.

Overall, ProSolo is wildly fun. The drag racing start tree adds a whole new element/place to gain/lose time.
The Super Challenge format is also really cool. As much as i softly hoped to be able to driving home at 1:30pm on Sunday, I am super glad I stuck it out for the extra runs.

14 in DST, trophies to 5.
Local OVR buddy was codriving with me, also his first ProSolo.









Heat 1 I was .800 or worse on the tree, but was able to claim third place behind Riley Heaton and Ken Houseal.
Heat 2 I closed the reaction time gap alot and jumped to the class lead on these two runs: 32.634 and 32.696. I put quite a distance on Riley on the right side course, while he was slightly better on the left. Overall margin was .117 overnight.

Sunday I only improved the right side raw, but hit a cone. No gain for me in Heat 3 on the left. Riley ran a 32.509 and jumped into the win.




Fortunately, I was close enough to him to earn the 21st spot in the Super Challenge.


The Challenge was Super fun; Two Knockout rounds to dwindle from top 32 to top 8. Those Knockout rounds were 2 runs per side, 4 total like the normal Heats. The final 8 bracket was single run per side.

I actually finished 3rd in my first Knockout (K2) round, and then 7th in K3, bumping my fellow OVR driver out of the challenge.

Went up against Sam Strano and lost by .050 combined left+right.


I sit now with a bit of 'what could have been' had I not redlit this early-challenge 32.317 and if I could have found the Sunday afternoon gains one session/heat earlier than I did...

[autoracer86]

Great driving and write up of the event before moving to Ireland I was doing tour and pro events. I really miss them ! Now I just follow along on live timing for events my friends are at.

Keep it up man !!

[doward]

A few shots from the Toledo Pro:





Back at the local lot, the car isnt as good here. The lot is very bumpy and I have the car on the low side of ride height to chase front camber. The Shaftworks plates and strut flanges simply offer less camber than the 949 Xidas did, and even with a crash bolt im missing the other full degree I think the car wants.
As a result, it bottoms the front pretty often. I keep making small changes moving the dampers down and perches up trading droop for bump but I think i'll need to make one more adjustment and probably raise the front axle height ~5mm.





This course was super tight and slow, challenging to go fast but not super fun to drive. Ended up #2 PAX, #2 Raw, Same top three in both, Mark Stevens and Todd Kunze bracketing me.

[RT-BRZ]

Originally Posted by doward

.....This course was super tight and slow, challenging to go fast but not super fun to drive. Ended up #2 PAX, #2 Raw, Same top three in both, Mark Stevens and Todd Kunze bracketing me..................

You had me so confused and then I realized you only had the first run group in there. I was disappointed at first because that was the highest I've ever finished in raw time and in the top 5. Too bad it wasn't my car.

Edited to say thanks for the ride along. You helped me a lot.